Why Messi and several Argentine stars missed training

15.07.26 FT World Cup

England

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Argentina

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Argentina kicked off their preparations on Monday for the semi-final of the 2026 World Cup against England. The tournament, hosted in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, will continue until July 19.

Messi and several starters absent from training ahead of the semi-final

Today's training session took place without Lionel Messi and several key members of the squad. Head coach Lionel Scaloni opted to rest the players who played the full 120 minutes in the extended quarter-final.

This decision is part of a physical recovery program designed to help the world champions regain peak fitness ahead of the much-anticipated showdown against the Three Lions.

During the press conference, Scaloni explained his reasoning: “We need to recover, because that’s what we need most right now.”

Meanwhile, substitutes and those who saw limited action in the last match took part in a regular training session, while Lionel Messi stayed apart from the group in line with the recovery protocol set by the technical staff.

It's worth noting that the semi-final between Argentina and England will take place on Wednesday at 19:00 GMT at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Georgia.

Argentina: Lionel Messi already fired up to face England

Mohamed Rek |

Editorfr, ar, en

Mohamed Rek- sports content writer with over 10 years of experience creating football content in Arabic and French for platforms such as Foot Africa and Starafrica, combining accuracy, creativity, and audience engagement.

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